Saturday Rewind - Back to School We Go!

Where did the summer go?  Yep it's gone.  
I must confess though that I love my routines. 
 I have a school year routine and a summer routine.  
The problems start when I try to mix the two!!! 

 I am blessed to be starting the school year with lower numbers of first graders this year.  Can I get an Amen! 
 I am excited to have a new group for first graders 
to play and learn with.  

I try to remind myself constantly that I don't need to have the whole year planned out - just the first couple of weeks. My awesome teaching partner and I met and  mission accomplished!  We choose some great picture books to pair with beginning of school activities to get the year started on a positive note.  Looking forward to it.
  
Like most of you, I have been getting my classroom ready for the new school year. I moved into a portable classroom last year and the storage options have been 
challenging to say the least.

 I have bulletin boards up with clean, crisp, shades of blue fabric.  I know, I know.  Many people use paper, but I just love the fabric - no ripping and it can be used more than more year.  If I find a fabric piece I love I keep it in the rotation. To add a bit of freshness, I changed out all the borders this year.

This year I am going with owls and dots theme.  While not everything will be covered in owls, I do like to include a little cuteness to start the new year.  I went with a color theme of shades of blue with a little green and yellow thrown in for good measure. I am hoping for a calm feeling in the room for my 21 firsties (and me).

One plus of the portable classroom is that it is more of a rectangle than a square.  I have 3 distinct areas in the room for great learning to occur. I love the gathering area with a colorful literacy rug where we will 
spend lots of time learning together. 
I love the smell of freshly cleaned carpet.

The second area, the middle of the classroom, is a desk area.  I have the desks in long rectangles that will mimic tables. This allows each student to have a personal space with room for their many supplies and belongings.  It is also where direct instruction takes place and I can use the document camera and presenter to model concepts and provide demonstrations for my kiddos.

The third area is a small group, intervention area with a reading table.  I took the plunge (again) and had them get rid of my teacher's desk.  It makes the whole area roomy and open. This back corner of the room also houses my bookcase filled with binders and teaching manuals as well as my filing cabinet.

I am looking forward to the new year and am blessed to return to the job I love.  Here's wishing all of you a great start to your new school year.

Pictures coming soon:)

~ Clara @ Teaching 365